Developing applications for computer systems, including mobile applications for wireless devices, can be very expensive. As mobile applications (sometimes called “apps”) become more sophisticated, the development costs are likely to increase. In addition to the development costs, there are often marketing costs that raise the overall cost to an organization that develops and sells applications.
With the costs of developing and marketing applications being so high, a large sales volume may be required to recoup costs. Thus, each time a user obtains an unauthorized copy of an application, it becomes more difficult to recoup the costs expended and to make a profit from developing and marketing the application.